Calian, Advanced Technologies

Published purpose

Innovation in satellite communications and satellite earth observation has accelerated during the last decade. Advances in scientific instruments hosted aboard payloads, as well as high throughput communication satellites, have led to a wealth of information being handled by satellite ground stations in Canada and around the world. These spacecraft technology developments have driven a need for progress in satellite ground infrastructure. One of the key new technologies in satellite ground stations is the transport of satellite communication signals in a digital manner rather than using conventional analog approaches. This is commonly referred to as RF over IP. However, current product offerings of this type do not work reliably in the field due to real-world conditions and impairments. This project envisions the research and development of a high performance RF over IP device that overcomes these real-world impairments by using packet forward error correction, wideband equalization, packet buffering and compression to provide robust data transfers. The benefits include easily accessible scientific earth observation data and reliable satellite communications at a reduced cost to satellite operators, both of which are favourable for a large country like Canada.